Who Owns the Collection?

The Balance Between the Omnipotent State and Private Property in Bulgaria

10 June 2020

Spasimir Domaradzki

Visegrad Insight Fellow

Eleven years ago, the illegally acquired art collection by Vasil Bozkhov was legalised by the Bulgarian authorities. Now, it is the subject of a clash between the oligarch and the government touching upon questions of ownership and the role of the state.

In the shadow of the Covid-19 pandemic, a scandal with the potential to tumble Boiko Borisov from power is swirling in Bulgaria.

In January, the Prosecutor’s Office accused Vasil Bozhkov (also known as ‘The Skull’) of heading an organised crime group, extortions, corruption and abetting to misuse power. Bozhkov is among, if not the oldest Bulgarian oligarch that started his career with the end of communism. His wealth is not known, but a dozen years ago, the Polish Wprost magazine was ranking him among the top 50 wealthiest men in Central Europe.

Bozhkov’s main businesses are in the gambling industry. Since early 1990s Bozhkov took over casino’s, bingo halls and hotels and was often associated with the strongest men that were running the Bulgarian underground. Bozhkov has also owned various football clubs. For the last two years until last week, he was also the owner of the most famous Bulgarian football club – Levski Sofia.

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Spasimir Domaradzki

Visegrad Insight Fellow

Visegrad Insight Fellow. Researcher and lecturer at the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies of the University of Warsaw and Assistant Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Lazarski University in Warsaw.

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